Do you know your Halloween Etiquette?
The Johnston Family is ALMOST ready for Halloween night! We are so excited to be in a new neighborhood that we hear is AWESOME for “Haloweening” (per Anne W., thank you), and we can’t wait to be a part of it!
I have a dilemma, though! How do we go out and enjoy Halloween with the kiddos, but still make sure we’re part of the fun for the other kiddos in the neighborhood? As long as we’ve been married, we always missed the “crowd”, and this year, we don’t want to do that! Any tips would be appreciated! (We don’t like the whole ‘leave a bowl of candy on the porch’ thing!)
We still haven’t gotten a carving pumpkin, so I’m hoping they have some more!! Nothing like being last minute! (Hawk still isn’t sure he wants to be Cat in the Hat!!)
Make sure you remember a few Halloween Safety and Etiquette tips! It never hurts to be prepared!
Halloween Safety and Etiquette
Let each child hold his/her own flashlight! This way, you can see them, and they can see everything else.
Skip the houses that don’t have the porch light on! These are either families who are out trick or treating and having fun themselves, families who (for religious reason) do not participate in Halloween, or they are the fuddy duds who don’t have candy, or don’t like kids!
Look both ways before you cross the street! Tonight, people will be driving very slowly down most streets, but that doesn’t mean that it’s always safe to cross without being cautious!
If the homeowner does not put candy in your child’s bag/bucket/basket/, make sure he/she only takes one piece! There will NOT be a shortage of candy tonight, and you can guarantee that one per house will be sufficient!
Park your car and walk up and down the streets with your child. If you drive your car down the street parking as your kids stop, you’re going to cause a traffic jam, and this can be very dangerous if there is nowhere to stop in front of the house where your kids ring the bell. Just park it and walk!
If your child is old enough to be walking the streets alone at night, then they’re old enough to either go to a party/festival or just stay back and hand out candy. There’s nothing more frustrating than a group of 15-18 year olds pushing past the four year olds so that they can ring the doorbell first and get the first pick of the candy! In our old neighborhood, several families wouldn’t hand out candy to kiddos over a certain age! They also had the no costume, no candy policy! If you ran up to house with no effort or no costume, a wrinkled up Walmart bag, and you’re with a group of 15 year old kids, you’re not getting candy! At least make some kind of effort to get in the spirit! Rule of thumb (so I’m seeing), if they’re now a “teen”, then find something else fun for them to do!
Don’t let your kiddos go into anyone’s home unless you know them personally. If they’re not handing out treats AT the door, walk away, or go with them. (Yes, I thought the last episode of Modern Family was strange! No way I’d let my kids walk into a house to fumble through a makeshift haunted house, alone!)
Only let your children eat wrapped or sealed candy. You take your chances on anything, really, but especially with homemade treats (from people you do not know) or fresh fruit.
Always say thank you and HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Remember, Halloween is just as fun for those handing out candy as it is for those receiving! Make sure your children thank homeowners for their treats!
Be mindful of the yard and flowerbeds! Please make sure your kidlets walk on the sidewalk or driveways! For homeowners, if you do not want your flowerbeds in front of your door trampled, try sitting in the driveway with a bowl of candy!
Most pets are friendly, but they might be scared of the costumes! If you’re a homeowner, before opening your door, you might want to put Fido in the back bedroom. Yes, he may be great with children – most of the time – but there will be a lot of activity going on around your home, and you never know how he will react!
Don’t scare the little ones!! Yes, it may be fun for your tweens and teens to play “tricks” on each other, because after all, what is Trick or Treating without the Tricks, right? Please remind them that the littles don’t find it as amusing and it can totally ruin the experience for the them!
HAVE FUN!
Currently this is what will be emerging from the house this evening.. I say currently, because we’re still waiting on Hawk to decide. He wants to be a “Star Wars Guy” but all the costumes we have are too big for him!!
We hope you have a fun and safe Halloween!! Remember to brush your teeth before you go to bed tonight!
Good list except that not all houses with the porch light off are fuddy duds who don’t have candy, or don’t like kids! 🙂 lol. It may just mean they are not home and are out trick or treating themselves. 🙂
Haha, thank you for pointing that out, Tree! I actually though that, but guess I just spaced on adding that! 🙂
Mwah! (That will actually be us for most of the night!)
Lisa, these are really great tips! I heard of a town somewhere that actually made it against the law to trick or treat after like age 13 or something. Kids are so crazy.
Thanks Rhea,
Several years ago, we had a neighbor who would hand out full sized candy bars to the kiddos from the street that he knew. One Halloween, a group of teens came through the neighborhood in their street clothes and walmart bags, because they heard that there was GOOD candy on our streets.
The neighbor was so angry, he gave them ONE dumdum each, and after that, decided to make it a neighborhood thing to where you must at least have makeup or costume on to get any treats.
There are so many things for the older ones to do!!!!!
Great list! The older kids wont like coming to my house. Im not handing out candy! LOL My cauldron has small playdoughs, microphones, small party favor type toys, and a few small rice krispie treats but other than that…zero candy!